Description
This deliciously soft and tender vegan spice cake is full of all of the classic spices- ginger, cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg – and bakes so incredibly moist with sweet potato puree and molasses! Topped with a silky dairy free cream cheese frosting and eggless toasted vegan marshmallow meringue, this vegan sweet potato spice cake is a holiday masterpiece- and yes, it’s made in just one bowl!
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 1/4 cup (300 mL) vegan buttermilk, room temperature
- 4 cups (500 g) all-purpose flour (or gluten free 1:1 baking flour + 1 tbsp arrowroot or cornstarch)
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (200 g) light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (113 g) vegan butter, melted
- 1/2 cup (110 g) neutral cooking oil
- 1 can (15 ounces) sweet potato puree
- 1/4 cup (60 g) molasses
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
Cream cheese frosting:
- 1 batch vegan cream cheese frosting
Vegan Toasted Marshmallow Frosting:
- 1/2 cup (120 mL) aquafaba (chickpea brine)
- 1 tsp cream of tartar
- 1 cup (200 g) sugar
- 1/2 batch sugared cranberries
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 350F, and line three 8″ cake pans with oil and parchment paper OR a 9×13″ sheet cake pan with parchment paper. Make sure the vegan buttermilk is prepped.
- Whisk the wet ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the melted vegan butter, oil, sugar, brown sugar, molasses, sweet potato puree, sea salt, and vanilla extract. Add in the spices (cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg), followed by the baking powder and baking soda, and whisk to distribute them evenly into the batter.
- Finish the spice cake batter: Add in the flour, followed by the vegan buttermilk, and whisk just until the flour is integrated into the wet ingredients.
- Bake: Pour the cake batter into the prepared pans and bake for 33-36 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. For sheet cake, I recommend baking for 40 minutes. While the cake is baking, I recommend making the sugared cranberries here.
- Cool: Allow the cakes to cool in their pans for 10 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely before frosting (sometimes up to an hour, as sweet potato can take longer to cool).
- Make the cream cheese frosting: Right before you’re ready to frost and assemble, make the cream cheese frosting according to the recipe’s instructions.
- Assemble the cake: For this portion, we’re essentially making a crumb coat with the cream cheese frosting, as the marshmallow meringue will go on top. Add about 1/2 cup of frosting to one cake layer, and spread it to the edges. Repeat for the next cake layer, and top with the third cake layer. Frost the outside of the cake, using a bench scraper to smooth the edges of the cake. Once frosted, place the cake into the fridge to chill while you make the marshmallow meringue.
- Make the marshmallow meringue frosting: In a large bowl of a stand mixer, add in the aquafaba and cream of tartar. Begin mixing on high speed, adding in 1 tablespoon of sugar at a time, pausing between each spoonful (I count 2 breaths) before adding the next. Keep this process up until there is no more sugar. Then continue mixing the meringue until you reach stiff peaks, about 10 minutes.
- Top and toast the cake: Remove the cake from the fridge, and top the marshmallow meringue on top, spreading to create one even coat over top. Then use a culinary torch to lightly toast the meringue. Top with sugared cranberries.
- Slice and serve! Slice the cake, and serve! Because meringue weeps more quickly in the fridge, I recommend if you’re waiting to serve this cake, making the meringue topping about 20 minutes prior to serving. Then toast immediately after assembling and serve!
Notes
Gluten free: I recommend using King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten free flour.
